Relocating to Macedonia

I know of someone that did something similar but that did not last. I think it could have but the problem they had was advertising and getting repeat business.  Been to MK once and there isn't a whole lot more to see. Where to find the sort of tourists willing to travel around looking at random spots in the Balkans was the challenge I think.  If it was a friend of mine asking the same question I would say they need to think very carefully about why someone from another country would get on a plane and chose to stay at your location over the many places in the world with similar selling points which are perhaps more well known.  I would consider carefully how you market it and who too in order to understand if it stacks up as a business.  Personally, So I would ask yourself that fundamental question and get the business planning right before spending anything. 

Forgive me if I seem like I am raining on your idea but before you invest money of any sort you need to be able to answer those questions and more.  I spend a lot of time with ex pats and potential investors and most do not last here so making the right considerations with a very un-emotional and pragmatic view is the best advice I can offer.

However, I have noticed that for most expats (Brits and elsewhere) that one of the greater challenges seems to be integration.  Particularly if your from the UK, Germany, France or the US the challenge is that the Macedonia is very small.  Skopje is relatively small for a European city from those countries and it can be quite stifling at times.  Initially I lived in Ohrid with my wife and even she found it stifling and she is Macedonian. The challenge is that the culture, no matter how much one might like it, is not your own.  It is a novelty for a while but then aspects can wear on you a bit.  There are not a huge number of Ex pats in Macedonia and particularly not a huge number of Brits.  This can feel quite isolating at times.  There is a reasonable community of expats in Skopje because of the presence of the Embassy's and the air port but less as you get further out.   So from your partner's point of view, the isolation and limited availability of aspects of life they may take fore granted in the UK may be the biggest challenge in the end. 

I assume you probably spent some time here in advance to test the water but I include this in case you haven't or someone else didn't.  Staying here a couple of weeks in no way prepares one for living here full time. 

I spent a fair bit of time here prior to moving making Macedonia my primary residence but I was completely unprepared from some of the frustrations of living in MK and it took a long time for me to adjust to experience more of the pleasant aspects because one has to simply stop expecting things like simple shipment to your home from Ebay or Amazon.  Limited shopping and food choices were also a major issue for me personally for quite some time but there are many considerations someone from outside the Balkans in general would need to make here.

I wish you the very best of luck no matter what you do but please, don't leave your choice to luck.  Get that research and all due diligence done first and make sure your onto a winning proposition before you do it.